Procure IT Right sets out to woo UK VARs

UK newcomer Procure IT Right has claimed its resellers can save their customers up to 40 per cent on their IT purchases, freeing up the budget for high-margin project work.

The Sweden-based procurement specialist will launch in the UK in March and is seeking UK resellers.

The company employs 50 procurement experts, mostly lawyers, who run a managed service that investigates the quality of purchasing processes. It estimates it could save around half of a company’s IT budget through tactical buying.

Jonas Berglund, manager of Procure IT Right, said: “On average we can cut costs by 40 per cent when we are responsible for the buying process. Usually a company manages to save between 10 and 20 per cent, but we use our skills as negotiators and knowledge of the suppliers to go even further.”

The savings could be even larger in the public sector, he claimed. “We do a lot of public sector work in Sweden, which follows the same EU guidelines as the UK.”

Resellers that can save their client money on purchasing might find that the budget surplus is spent
on higher-margin project work, Berglund speculated.

However, Clive Longbottom, services director at research firm Quocirca, said: “Most companies could save around 20 per cent of their budget by being more disciplined and buying online.

“But they do not. I cannot see this going overly well with the procurement department. Too many people have a vested interest in maintaining internal control of purchasing.”